About Tragedy of the Commons Term Paper

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Tragedy of the Commons

In Garrett Hardin's essay "Tragedy of the Commons," the author presents a radical solution to the overpopulation problem. The title of the essay refers to a scenario presented by a mathematician in 1833. In the scenario, a communal pasture is enjoyed by several herdsmen in a given area. Everything is fine until "social stability" is achieved (2). When that happens, each herdsman feels entitled, even obliged, to "maximize his gain," (3). All the other herdsmen do the same thing and before long the pasture becomes overgrazed. Therefore, human self-serving instincts do not necessarily benefit the collective, and in many cases such as this, self-serving leads to collective destruction. Hardin calls this collective destruction the "tragedy of the commons." Hardin then applies the metaphor of the pasture to other tragedies of the commons, ultimately focusing on the overpopulation problem. According to Hardin, overpopulation can be stopped through public policy that limits breeding. Human beings and their societies enact a slew of laws that limit our personal freedoms. Because overpopulation is causing some undesirable and even disastrous effects such as starvation and pollution, laws should be enacted to enforce human population control. Although Hardin's position is radical and shocking, and offensive to the libertarian social values that most Americans uphold, it is difficult to resist the inherent logic and practicality of the solutions he proposes.

Hardin begins his argument by noting that some problems have definite technical or technological solutions, while others do not. For example, the natural sciences can devise new ways of harvesting wheat and the computer sciences can design new hardware and software solutions to meet the needs of consumers. However, some problems cannot be solved by technical or technological means. Hardin compares these problems to the game of tic tac toe, in which ultimately there is no real way of winning through technical skill.

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The overpopulation problem according to Hardin is a problem for which no technical solution exists. Therefore, only radical solutions can bring an end to the problem. Hardin's analogy is apt and easy to understand. While tic tac toe and overpopulation have nothing in common at face value, Hardin makes a clear point by reminding his readers that other than coercion, no technical solution exists for the current "tragedy of the commons." Birth control is a technical solution, but it cannot be implemented as a means of population control without coercive devises such as legal or cost-prohibitive measures. Hardin later explains why appeals to conscience do not work in this case, and he is correct. Educating people about the consequences of overpopulation does not deter people interested in breeding from breeding. If a person has the freedom and ability to have children, she will do so unless there are serious considerations.

Hardin then describes pollution as a modern tragedy of the commons. In the case of pollution, the tragedy does not result from "taking something out of the commons, but of putting something in," (4). Whether chemical waste or paper garbage, pollution is a major factor affecting the health and well-being of all humans and animal species. Already human beings and societies have devised laws to regulate pollution. It is illegal to dump waste in public areas. Therefore, there are few "commons" in which people, at least in the United States, can pollute at their own will. Private property, according to Hardin, can cause pollution problems and indeed has in the past. Private property continues to cause pollution problems, as when the private corporation feels free to dump waste on their own land, not caring that the chemicals that seep into the land affects the quality of drinking water for the entire town. The factory that feels free to.....

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